Move, rotate, or scale a feature

The Move tool , Rotate tool , and Scale tool manipulate selected features interactively with the pointer or with a specified value. Clicking one of the tools in the Modify Features pane shows all three in their respective tool pane.

To move, rotate, or scale annotation features, use the Annotation tool .

Move a feature

To move a feature, select and drag it with the pointer. After selecting multiple features, you can right-click and align or distribute the features. To move a topological edge or feature, turn on map topology.

To move a feature to a specified location, use the Move To tool .

1. On the Edit tab, turn map topology off, choose your snapping preferences, and show the Modify Features pane.
   1. In the Manage Edits group, click the topology arrow and choose No Topology .

      Note:

      When map topology is turned on, rubber band lines preview the topological connectedness of your edits as you move the feature. When the rubber band lines disappear, the connected features are no longer topologically connected and are not edited.

   2. In the Snapping group, click the Snapping drop-down menu and enable your snapping preferences.
   3. In the Features group, click Modify .
2. In the pane, expand Alignment, and click Move .
   • To exit the tool, press Esc.
3. Click Select , and select the features.
   • To refine the selection, right-click a feature in the tree view, and click Unselect or Only Select This .

     

4. If you are using the selection anchor to snap to other features, drag it to the new location.
   • Press Ctrl, hover over the anchor until the vertex pointer appears, and drag the anchor.
5. Hover near the selection until the move pointer appears, and drag the feature to the new location.
   • In a 3D scene, drag the selection along the x-, y-, or z-axis handle.
6. To apply your changes, click Finish or press F2.

Keyboard shortcuts for Move

Keyboard shortcuts for the Move tool

Keyboard shortcut	Action	Comment
Ctrl and click	Relocate the anchor.	Relocate the selection anchor to the clicked location. You can zoom in to a feature without the current location of the anchor being visible in the active view.
Ctrl and drag	Move the anchor.	Move the selection anchor.

Rotate a feature

To rotate a feature with the pointer, select and drag it. The primary selection anchor specifies the center of rotation. The secondary anchor snaps the rotation angle to another feature.

To specify an angular value, press A. If On-screen constraints is turned on, press the Tab key.

1. On the Edit tab, turn map topology off, choose your snapping preferences, and show the Modify Features pane.
   1. In the Manage Edits group, click the topology arrow and choose No Topology .

      Note:

      When map topology is turned on, rubber band lines preview the topological connectedness of your edits as you rotate the feature. When the rubber band lines disappear, the connected features are no longer topologically connected and are not edited.

   2. In the Snapping group, click the Snapping drop-down menu and enable your snapping preferences.
   3. In the Features group, click Modify .
2. In the pane, expand Alignment and click Rotate .
   • To exit the tool, press Esc.
3. Click Select , and select the features.
   • To refine the selection, right-click a feature in the tree view, and click Unselect or Only Select This .

     

4. If you are using the primary anchor to specify the center of rotation, or the secondary anchor to snap the rotation angle to another feature, drag them to the new locations.
   • Press S to show the secondary anchor. By default, it appears near the pointer.
   • To move the primary or secondary anchor, press Ctrl, hover over the anchor until the vertex pointer appears, and drag the anchor.
5. To rotate the features, hover near the selection until the rotate pointer appears, and drag the selection.
   • To specify an angular value, press A.
     • A positive value rotates the selection counterclockwise. A negative value rotates the selection clockwise.
   • If on-screen constraints is turned on, press the Tab key, specify a rotation angle, and press Enter.
6. To apply your changes, click Finish or press F2.

Keyboard shortcuts for Rotate

Keyboard shortcuts for the Rotate tool

Keyboard shortcut	Action	Comment
A	Angle.	Open the Angle dialog box.
Ctrl and click	Relocate the anchor.	Relocate the selection anchor to the clicked location. You can zoom in to a feature without the current location of the anchor being visible in the active view.
Ctrl and drag	Move the anchor.	Move the selection anchor.
S	Access the secondary anchor.	Turn the secondary anchor on and off. When it is turned on, the anchor is positioned at the pointer location.

Scale a feature

To scale a feature, select the feature and drag a control handle on the bound box with the pointer. Features scale outward from the primary selection anchor. The secondary anchor snaps the selection to other features.

To specify a scale factor, press F.

1. On the Edit tab, turn map topology off, choose your snapping preferences, and show the Modify Features pane.
   1. In the Manage Edits group, click the topology arrow and choose No Topology .

      Note:

      When map topology is turned on, rubber band lines preview the topological connectedness of your edits as you scale the feature. When the rubber band lines disappear, the connected features are no longer topologically connected and are not edited.

   2. In the Snapping group, click the Snapping drop-down menu and enable your snapping preferences.
   3. In the Features group, click Modify .
2. In the pane, expand Alignment and click Scale .
3. Click Select , and select the features.
   • To refine the selection, right-click a feature in the tree view, and click Unselect or Only Select This .

     

4. If you are using the primary anchor to specify the center of the selection, or the secondary anchor to snap the selection to another feature, drag them to the new locations.
   • Press S to show the secondary anchor. By default, it appears near the pointer.
   • To move the primary or secondary anchor, press Ctrl, hover over the anchor until the vertex pointer appears, and drag the anchor.
5. To scale the features, hover near a control handle until the scale pointer appears, and drag the handle.
   • To specify a scale factor, press F.
   • In a 3D scene, drag the selection along the x-, y-, or z-axis handle.
6. To apply your changes, click Finish or press F2.

Keyboard shortcuts for Scale

Keyboard shortcuts for the Scale tool

Keyboard shortcut	Action	Comment
F	Apply a scale factor.	Open the Scale dialog box.
Ctrl and click	Relocate the anchor.	Relocate the selection anchor to the clicked location. You can zoom in to a feature without the current location of the anchor being visible in the active view.
Ctrl and drag	Move the anchor.	Move the selection anchor.
S	Access the secondary anchor.	Turn the secondary anchor on and off. When it is turned on, the anchor is positioned at the pointer location.